Imperfectly perfect
by Jace Specter
Summary: Partners in crime, The captain of the Archery team Artemis Crock, and the track star Wally West have a colorful history. This is the day it all comes to ahead. AU. Oneshot.


**This is my first young justice fanfic, let me know what you think and what can be improved upon, enjoy!**

* * *

 **Saturday 8:00 AM**

 **Central city High school**

Detention wasn't the most entertaining way to spend two hours on a Saturday morning, but it passed the time. I normally arrived early which depending on which teacher was running detention could have me sitting around for years. Luckily for my friend this was one of these mornings.

 ***TAP* *TAP***

The noise on the window surprised me seeing that the chemistry room where detention was being held was on the second floor of the school. I suspected who it was even before I pulled the slanting window inwards. A flurry of movement instantly followed with Wally West in all his ginger glory pulling himself up into the classroom, tripping on the way in and landing face first on the floor, and quickly moving up to the desk I had currently occupied as our detention teacher pushed open the chemistry room door.

"Good morning breakfast club, good to see all of you again." Said the Chemistry teacher and track and field coach, Mr. Allen. Luckily for Wally, Mr. Allen had his same affinity for being late despite one being an old track star and the other an up and coming runner who was gunning to beat all the old records.

Wally gave a sigh of relief and turned back to me.

"Sorry bout that Arty, there's no way Barry would give me a break if I was late." I rolled my eyes and flicked his ear.

"one, do not call me Arty you know I hate it, and two how the actual fuck did you get to the second story window and why?" He swatted my hand away and rubbed his ear feigning a pain larger than a flick could cause.

"Artemis you wound me so, of course, I know you hate it that's why I say it, and the bricks are spaced in a way where if you try hard enough you can climb, as for the why Barry went through the main doors first and I needed and alternate route or I would be in more trouble than I already am with detention."

"I do have to say that is some semi-solid reasoning, and how can you be in more trouble we're in detention every other week pretty much." He gave me his signature smirk and nodded replying simply.

"I know but hey at least this time it was worth it."

* * *

 _All their friends would describe them as partners in crime since we first stopped being at each other's throats. They were the best of friends that also drove each other up a wall all the time, the head of the archery team who ousted Wally's buddy Roy and the hot-headed sprinter had a colorful history. At first, their mutual hate of the other led to them always being at the others sporting events so that they could attempt to upstage the other with their individual achievements until they gained a mutual respect for the other and despite this still showed up for each of the others events. As Meghan put it, "They started crushing" which wasn't necessarily untrue. They would be inseparable at party's or when out with all their friends but denied everything when confronted. They both were the others first kiss on a dare made on new year's, they both claimed to hate it but the other new it wasn't the exact truth. They helped the other deal with and get rid of their abusive fathers, her's a criminal and both an asshole who had a love for dealing out punishments. This event helped cement an understanding between the two that their other friends wouldn't entirely get. They have helped each other through thick and thin and would always be there to help the other, whether it be backing the other up in a fight which landed them in detention for the next three Saturdays or helping with homework._

 _The fight was a result of wally attempting to get back at his track nemesis, stuck up Hunter 'My father is the superintendent' Zoloman. The plan was to make him paranoid by having everyone pretend to be talking about him behind his back with a few glances and it worked swimmingly until one person came forward and said it was Wally's idea. Immediately after practice Zoloman came up and decked wally when he was talking to Artemis. Wally went down to a knee and Artemis pushed Zoloman away and was turning to help wally when Zoloman grabbed and yanked her back with her ponytail causing her to fall in response to this wally threw a vicious right hook that took Zoloman down to the ground, breaking two of Wally's knuckles and breaking Zoloman's jaw and knocking out two teeth. The videos of the fight helped keep wally from being the one that got suspended and only put in detention with Artemis while Hunter was suspended from track and school for two weeks._

* * *

"Yea it was worth it," I socked him in the shoulder, "He did get a good hit on you, though." Wally brought his hand up to his eye which had the dark colorations of a pretty solid black eye. He let out a dismissive 'Pfft' and pushed his fiery hair back at the same time showing off his purple and red knuckles. He smirked and struck a pose while making the blue steel face.

"I think it makes me look tough." I couldn't help but smile at that, it was genuinely him, at school he dressed and acted preppy in button ups, Sperry's and khakis because that's what his mom wanted for him so how could he refuse. When he was at track and field practice he was stuffed into a uniform when all he wanted to do was run, but when hanging out with her or being in detention which was almost one and the same he acted how he wanted to be, messy but perfectly wally. Ratty converse, dark jeans with a hole in one knee, a maroon button up with flecks of bleach stains from when he dyed Connors' hair, the sleeves rolled up and buttoned improperly with one side tucked into his jeans and the other side hanging free and the uneven buttoning showing off a grey tank top that matched the maroon perfectly. Terrible manners but good intentions. The sound a clearing throat broke me from my thoughts and wally from his antics. Mr. Allen was ready to give his talk.

"Alright so as the regulars know," he said pointedly at Wally and I, "due to me needing space in my room for lab and test makeups I allow those in detention to go to the library if they need to study or the gyms if they are currently missing a sport, just don't cause more trouble than you already have and this arrangement will work." Many of the newer kids in detention nodded, eager to do something other than sitting around doing nothing for two hours. While the regulars all seemed just resigned because whatever they did was a waste of two hours.

I reached under the seat wally stole from me and grabbed my drawstring bag and threw it over my shoulder. He was lacking in the bag department, and we started towards the door when Mr. Allen called over to wally and me.

"Hey dynamic duo, I know you're not off to the library, where too?" interjecting before wally could say something stupid,

"Well, you said we could go to the gyms but I'm on the archery team, I can contact coach queen so you know I'm not bluffing, I was just gonna go to the range and show wally how to shoot." Not a total lie but good enough. Wally nodded along trying to back that up.

"I know you're on the archery team no need for clarifying, whenever I'm over at Mary's with Wally he never shuts up about his friend on archery team." I raised an eyebrow at wally who's freckled face was a tinge redder.

"Barry come on really?!" Barry began to laugh and I almost did as well.

"Kiddo I'm only messing with you, just stay out of more trouble the superintendent isn't happy my nephew punched his son, or here's a better idea, Artemis keep him out of trouble." I gave a mock salute and turned as wally was grumbling about how 'It was only one punch he had a glass jaw'.

* * *

"Must've been a pretty hard hit to break two knuckles on a glass jaw." Wally sat up from where he was laying in the grass of the range. His bow was discarded and lying next to him. He had given up trying to learn how to use a bow and arrow twenty minutes ago after the drawstring slapped his forearm one too many times, leaving a smarting bruise. I had a cuff for my arm but not one that fit him. "And hey, you puffed now pass." Taking the half burned out joint that was hanging from his mouth and tossed it to me. I dropped my bow trying to fumble for it in the air. I managed to catch it but it the burning end singed my hand, causing me to drop it.

"Damn it, Wally!" Wally in response started to roll through the grass laughing at her folly. I picked my bow back up and fired an arrow right in front of where he was rolling. The arrow sprouting right in front of his nose elicited a very audible gulp. Shaking out my hand I bent over to find what had fallen. Meekly wally responded with a quiet apology.

"Sorry…"

"It's fine wally" I responded with and exasperated sigh, "just answer my question." Wally shrugged,

"He was asking for it."

"Yea but Hunters hit only took you to your knee and you took him to the ground." He looked at his knuckles still puffed and bruised.

"Well he did pull you to the ground and I backed you up," and almost inaudibly "and no one fucks with my friends." I nodded in agreement taking a hit from the retrieved joint. I pulled out my phone to check the time, **8:45**.

"Are you going to go running before its time to leave?" Wally stood up and stretched out his back.

"I dunno maybe, wanna race?"

"Oh sure like I'd stand a chance against Kid Flash." Wally scowled at his nickname that had been bestowed by the assistant track coach, coach Garrick. "I mean I know you hate the nickname but it's not as bad as what Zoloman came up with in response." Wally's face broke into a grin at that,

"Nothing can be as bad as Zoom, and hey maybe I'll go easy on you." If I knew anything about wally west, he was taunting me and I could never resist a chance to crush him. Eyes narrowed, blowing smoke into his face.

"You're on West." And a smile broke out onto his face.

* * *

 **9:15**

The run left me wheezing and breathless but wally seemed to be hardly fazed by going easy on her, doing a mile in five minutes and forty-five seconds which she knew was going easy on her. He could run a mile in a minute faster than what he did. He was sitting in the grass on the side of the track next to me, stretching after the run. He had changed before running into a pair of shorts a few inches shy of being booty shorts, and a dull yellow and red tank top, and a pair of running shoes.

"why and how do you do this to yourself?" He smiled,

"Well it is very freeing to run incredibly fast, the world blurs around you and it's fun, as to how it takes a lot of practice and endura- "

"No, not that how, how do you run so much with the amount you smoke, you have to have had destroyed your lungs, don't you need those?"

"Ha! Oh, Artemis it kind of is training working on lung endurance." He could barely keep his face together.

"That's bullshit wall-man and you know it." And with that, they both lost it. Rolling around in the humid spring morning laughing the rest of detention away.

* * *

 **9:55**

"Are you going to Connor and Meghan's party?" I raised my eyebrows in question

"What party?" He came out from behind the corner of the archery range shed pulling back on his gray tank top, which left little to the imagination. It wasn't like I haven't seen him shirtless before it's just surprising whenever it does happen.

"they asked Zatanna to tell you, I'm assuming she forgot?"

"she is picking me up from detention so I'm guessing she would have told me then, who all is going?"

"I think like half the school, not actually but it's on the Kent's farm, ten minutes out of central so it'll be as the kids say a roaring banger." I rolled my eyes and started walking back towards the detention room so get signed in as assurance that nobody just straight up ditched.

"Are we expecting to have to play the avoidance game?"

"Probably not, Zoloman down for the count and junior is on the blacklist because of the shit he pulled winter break with the liquid nitrogen. So most likely no." I nodded and shot him a smile,

"Finally a party we can enjoy." He threw his head back and laughed.

We entered the building again and made our way to the chem room to catch Mr. Allen.

* * *

 **8:30**

 **Kent's Farm**

"they sure did invite a lot of people." I absentmindedly nodded in agreement with Zatanna as she drove up the front drive of the Kent's farm, the front yard had been turned into a parking lot. The crappy beaters and the expensive cars told the tale of the wide variety of people here. Right in the middle of the mess you could see Zatanna's off again on again boyfriend, Dick Grayson leaning against his adopted dad's Lincoln Futura talking to wally who was gesturing animatedly. He was dressed in his normal Gotham academy uniform, while wally was dressed as he was earlier. Zatanna pulled into a spot that they had been holding for the pair for when they arrived. Dick opened the door for Zatanna as wally sat on the Futura's hood and hooted at dick for being such a gentleman. Dick rolled his eyes and gave Zatanna a kiss. I turned away at that point getting out of the car but I could hear Wally's gagging so I knew Dick was putting on a show.

When he saw me he sprung off the hood of the car and Jerked his head towards the house.

"I think my taunts encouraged them more and I doubt you want to stick around for that."

"At this point West everything you joke about is a challenge." Wally sighed,

"A gift and a curse." I pushed his shoulder ending him almost off the side of the stairs leading up to the main door.

"I'm pretty sure you are a gift and a curse." Wally regained his footing and put his hand up in mock hurt and surprise.

"A stinging rebuke but was that I compliment I heard in there? Has Arty lost her cold demeanor and dare I say, become fond of the Wall-man?"

 _I'll never live that one down._ "I told you not to call me Arty, Kid Flash." Wally stuck out his tongue and bolted off into the party before I could grab him.

I stalked through the front door after him to find Conner and Meghan greeting people as they entered. Conner didn't look happy, but well he never did, and Meghan was beaming at the successful party they had thrown. The inside of the house was a bit Smokey and dark with loud music thrumming from the inside and there seemed to be more activities outback in the fields.

"Artemis! I'm so glad you could make it! Wally just blew through."  
"Hey Meghan," I nodded to Conner in way of a greeting which he returned with a grunt. "Speaking of the red haired menace where did he go?"

"Probably the kitchen, didn't Zatanna drive you here? Where is she?" she looked past me out the still open door.

"She and Dick had a passionate greeting." I raised my eyebrows raised suggestively the meaning dawned on Meghan.

"So they're together again?"

"Yea to Kaldur, wally, and Roy's chagrin, but I don't think red can really speak on that based on his relationship with jade." Meghan nodded in agreement. More people arrived so I cleared the doorway and promised to go out sometime soon. Most likely when Zatanna and Dick break up again.

I made my way through the press of body's grinding against each other to the sound of EDM, to the kitchen. But I was intercepted by someone I was not expecting to see, Linda Park. One of Wally's biggest 'fans'. She has tried since freshman year to get with wally but has met rejection every time. But she thinks that try and try again and you will succeed. Her way too bubbly voice broke through the electronic sludge fest of music

"Hey, Artemis! Have you seen wally tonight?" _Like clockwork_

"I don't know if he's even here tonight truth be told." I had to shout to be heard over the music. At my response, Linda visibly deflated.

"Okay… just let me know if you see him!" and with that, she was off. _I gotta find wally._

Sure enough, he was in the kitchen, sitting on the table with a bag of chips in one hand and salsa in the other talking with Kaldur and Raquel who was trying to steal a ship from wally. The kitchen was the least crowded place at this party, despite the back porch entrance which was way more convenient than the one everyone else was using.

Kaldur was shaking his head at his friend's antics as I walked up. In one quick swoop, I snagged the chips away from Wally and angled the bag towards Raquel so that wally could not grab them back. I could hear wally huff as Kaldur and Raquel laughed and we went through the movement of conversation until Raquel pulled Kaldur off to dance.

I handed Wally his chips back and his deflated look seemed to go away before he said,

"We got a problem, Mahkent snuck in and is here." Cameron Mahkent was a stalker, not unlike Linda. But Cameron was hung up on me because we 'Dated' back in middle school, it wasn't even that much just holding hands and a kiss on the cheek once, but then I changed schools when my dad got released from jail and I met wally, Cameron still thought he had a chance after coming to central city high school, which he hardly had in the first place.

"Ugh, that creep, Linda is also here I saw her a few minutes ago." Wally seemed to pale slightly.

"Damn, I told her I wouldn't be here." He started peering into the party outside the kitchen, he had a good view.

"I said the same thing but you know her."

"I guess she takes my lack of interest as a challenge huh?" I let out a huff and looked up at him, a smile barely contained on his face. I threw my hands up in mock frustration,

"Get your head in the game west!" covering his mouth with his hand he nodded.

"I know, how about you over my back I cover yours if we see one of them coming give a sign say where they are on the clock and we duck into the pantry." He kicked his shoe into the direction of the door a few feet away, "I'll cover the back porch entrance and you cover the dance floor, sound good?" I shrugged slightly.

"sounds good, but you came up with it so I'm iffy," He shot me a look, "Are you sure you want to just hang here the entire party?"

"I'm fine with it, it's what I do normally and you normally hang with Zatanna until she begins to party too hard or drink and you end up wherever I am, and I think you would agree in the fact that her and Dick skipped the natural progression of things and went from first base to home."

"Oh god, I do not want to think about that, and it'll be fine here."

"Awesome now if at all possible can you hand me one of those brownies."

* * *

 **9:53**

There was always a little awkwardness when helping each other avoid one of our various suitors, it leads to some... compromising situations, to say the least, and once when either of us said why not pretend we were dating it was quickly shot down because our feelings became a bit too real. It was hard to hide seeing how close we were, and Zatanna, Meghan, and Raquel told me to go for it. With wally it is hard for many people to tell what wally is going to do, the way he acts is erratic and all his asinine flirting really confuses people. But he always acted pretty see through around me which is part of the reason we are the friends we are. Which all lead to how we ended up in this situation.

* * *

 **9:40**

We had been cracking jokes and having a good time, wally continually stuffing his face. There had been no sign or Zatanna or Dick and no text response either. Meghan and Conner had run by trying to contain a small fight that broke out. In the middle of a story about some of the antics, Roy got off to before he got all serious, Wally's eyes suddenly widened and he cut himself off.

"Mahkent, your Six O'clock" My back was to the porch and I turned to open the pantry, Cameron was distracted by talking to his friend Axel. I turned back to wally to see Linda talking with her friend and approaching from the dance floor, obviously unaware that she was nearing her read headed prize.

"Behind you!" I reached out grabbed his arm and pulled Him into the pantry and closed the door until only a small crack of light was let in. all that remained as evidence were a two crumpled and one upturned chip bag that wally had dropped when I pulled him, and a few soda cans. The pantry was much smaller than we had originally thought, Wally had to crouch a bit to avoid smacking his head on the upper shelves that stuck out unevenly, which he did multiple times, I moved out of his way slightly and looked out the door to see Cameron at the counter opposite where we had been sitting and looking around while axel was seemingly heading off to do his own thing. Then I heard that annoyingly bubbly voice and wally did as well which elicited a groan.

"Hey, cam!" Cameron turned to see Linda bound over to him swaying slightly.

"Oh hey Linda, have you seen Artemis around by any chance?" she bobbed her head up and down very quickly

"Yea I did she came into the kitchen after she told me wally wasn't here, which he is, my friend said she saw Artemis talking to him." at the mention of wally Cameron's face scrunched a bit, his dislike of wally was well known. Wally poked my side and whispered,

"What can you see?"

"Cameron and Linda are talking about us at the party."

"Damn, does it seem like their leaving? It's kinda cramped."  
"Let me check."

I peered through the crack again and I could feel wally shifting around and peering over me out into the kitchen where Linda and Cameron were still talking trying to piece together where we might be. This went on for ten minutes until Axel came by to tell Cameron he was leaving and Cameron saw him off, Linda also got picked up by her friends since she was too drunk to function properly expect she tripped putting a hand on the door I was peering through, shutting it right in my face. I recoiled hitting my head into Wally's chin who then pulled his head back into the shelving above. Through the dark, I could see wally biting his hand trying not to make any noise as I rubbed the top of my head.

"You okay?" I whispered unsure of Linda was still outside the door.

"Yea fine just a sharp pain on the lower and upper parts of my head." He strained out

"Here let me feel for a bump." He bent down slightly as I pushed through his hair in the dark to try and find a bump.

"With all your hair it should have been cushioned."

"Not sure if that's how it works" He sounded slightly out of breath.

"Ah well I'm not feeling anything, I think you're all good." I slid my hands down and out of his hair resting them on his shoulders for one last look. He raised his head and our eyes met. In that moment it I could feel a lurch in my chest, a sudden flush of what felt like anxiety but less so, a punch that brought an uncomfortable warmth. Wally must have felt it too because he went to scratch the back of his head.

"I… uh…" I couldn't let this chance slide away, I moved my hands up from his shoulders to where the neck meets his jawline and pulled him forward.

It was hard to be accurate with closed eyes, but our lips found each other, his were chapped slightly and I'm sure mine weren't either, it wasn't a perfect kiss, far from it, but it was like them, not perfect but perfect in their own special way. The kiss felt like it went on forever, but right before the either of us broke it off the other would go back in. My hands had migrated back into his hair and his were around my waist. The kisses were becoming deeper, and that was when we broke off, catching our breath _. The only time I've heard Wally breathless._

"I feel like that should have happened a long time ago." I huffed slightly.

"Yea, no kidding." I could feel his smile radiating out from his face and I knew what he was going to say next.

"So does this mean I'm your ninja boyfriend?" I pushed him without effort,

"God you're such a nerd." That was the only thing either of them had remembered after the one-night Dick and Zatanna had thrown a party. My next response was cut off when the pantry door was flung open. I almost cried out in surprise. But that was covered by Meghan's surprised cry.

"You two!?" She gasped as wally tried to back pedal.

"What no we … uh… um... we're hiding from Linda and Cameron." It must have been pretty obvious, Wally's hair all messed up both our faces red and the attempt made by wally to cover it up. I stepped out moving past Meghan into the kitchen where Conner was waiting for whatever they needed from the pantry. He looked very confused as they both walked out. Meghan had a huge smile on her face and looked about ready to explode out of happiness, and before Meghan could say anything else I said,

"Yes" And proceeded to grab Wally's hand and pull him out towards the front door. It was rude but the embarrassment of being discovered like that was a bit too much at the moment. wally caught up with what was going on as we were starting to make our way through the cars.

"Artemis, hey are you okay?" I took a deep breath

"Yea I just wasn't expecting to be barged in on also it looks like Z's and Dicks cars are gone so we're out of rides."

"whew, I was worried it was because of the… you know, and I didn't get a ride with Dick."

"No, the kiss was fine, well a… bit more than fine, and wait I thought you came here with Dick?"

"Well I am glad to hear that, and yea I got my bike back it's over by where Dicks car was."

"You finally got the bike back! I thought it was trashed after the liquid nitrogen."

"The insides were, I had to replace everything but then the outside plating got splits and cracks in the plexiglass which looked pretty cool." He stepped inside the stalks of corn and wheeled out the bike. The bike was a sleek jet black Ducati (For reference the Dark Knight Ducati is what I'm modeling after), an 18th birthday gift from Dick that wally adopted as his 'Baby'. The plating had gray and white splintering through the plexiglass. He reached into space under the back wheel and got out two helmets and tossed one to me and swung his leg over the seat and removed the jacket behind him and patted the spot behind him.

"Your chariot awaits." He handed her the brown riding jacket. "Pop that helmet on and wear this, you are lacking in layers and I have three on, so It'll keep you warm."  
"So romantic wally, not even an hour after and you're already having me wear your clothes." He turned his head forward and slapped the visor down. His voice broke as he responded,

"JUSt get on..." Smiling I pulled the jacket on and hopped on the bike behind him, I zipped up the jacket, and before I put the helmet on and asked,

"So where are we off to this fine evening?" He turned his head back and tapped the helmet.  
"First of all, helmet on, second of all I was thinking… maybe back to my house… I mean if you're okay with that…" He started rambling on. Shaking my head, I pulled off his helmet and stopped the flow of words with a chaste kiss on the lips.

"Well, I think your ninja girlfriend is fine with the idea." I pushed on my helmet, "Now come on helmet on West." He pushed back his hair and slid on his helmet.

"Hold tight babe, like me this thing is built for speed." My attempts to call him a nerd was drowned out by the revving of the engine and wally whooping as the motorcycle shot off down the pathway of the farm.

Like wally west, the Years and Years of friendship and dancing around a relationship helped me get to know him and gained me my best friend and partner in crime, the time we spent together as friends was a gift. But the time we took dancing around with awkwardness and fears of rejection all culminating to one moment 5 years down the road was a curse, something we wished would have happened earlier, it was in essence exactly like us and our lives together. Imperfectly perfect.


End file.
